Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Compramos maíz en el mercado por la mañana. - We buy corn at the market in the morning.

Present (habitual or current): “We buy”
- Example: Por las mañanas compramos maíz. (We buy corn in the mornings.)
Preterite (completed past): “We bought”
- Example: Ayer por la mañana compramos maíz. (Yesterday morning we bought corn.)

In your sentence, without another time marker, it most naturally reads as a general/habitual present. To make it clearly past for “this morning,” say esta mañana.

If I want to say “we used to buy” or “we were buying,” what changes?

Use the imperfect: comprábamos (note the accent).

Comprábamos maíz en el mercado por las mañanas. (We used to buy corn at the market in the mornings / We would buy…)

Why is there no article before maíz?

Because maíz is a mass/uncountable noun here. Spanish doesn’t use a partitive article like “some”; you just say compramos maíz. Use an article when talking about a specific batch or corn in general as a species:

Specific: Compramos el maíz que recomendaste. (We bought the corn you recommended.)
Generic: El maíz es básico en la dieta. (Corn is a staple in the diet.)

Could I use regional words like elote, choclo, or jojoto instead of maíz?

Yes, depending on what you mean and where:

Maíz: neutral/standard for the plant or grain across the Spanish-speaking world.
Elote (Mexico, parts of Central America): usually a corn cob (fresh, on the cob).
Choclo (Andes, Southern Cone): fresh corn/cob.
Jojoto (Venezuela): corn on the cob. If you mean cobs, you might say mazorcas de maíz.

Why is it en el mercado and not al mercado?

En marks location: comprar en el mercado = buy at/in the market.
A marks motion toward: ir al mercado = go to the market. Note a + el = al.

What does por mean in por la mañana? Could I say para la mañana?

Here por indicates a general time frame (“in the morning”). Para la mañana means “for/by the morning” (a purpose or deadline).

Time frame: Compramos… por la mañana.
Deadline/purpose: Lo tendremos listo para la mañana. (We’ll have it ready by the morning.)

Is por la mañana the same as en la mañana or de la mañana?

Por la mañana: widely used and neutral for “in the morning.”
En la mañana: common in much of Latin America; also fine in many contexts.
De la mañana: used with clock times: a las 9 de la mañana (at 9 in the morning).
In Argentina/Uruguay, you may also hear a la mañana for “in the morning.”

How do I say “this morning” and “tomorrow morning” correctly?

This morning: esta mañana (or hoy por la mañana).
- Esta mañana compramos maíz.
Tomorrow morning: mañana por la mañana (also mañana en la mañana in many countries; mañana a la mañana in Rioplatense Spanish).
- Mañana por la mañana compramos maíz.

Does mañana mean “morning” or “tomorrow”? How do I avoid confusion?

Both exist:

la mañana = the morning (note the article).
mañana (no article) = tomorrow. Use the article or a preposition to make it clear: por la mañana, esta mañana, mañana por la mañana.

Can I move the time/place around? What word order options are natural?

Yes. Common options:

Compramos maíz en el mercado por la mañana. (neutral)
Por la mañana, compramos maíz en el mercado. (time up front; add a comma in writing)
En el mercado compramos maíz por la mañana. (place up front for emphasis) Spanish is flexible; moving time/place shifts emphasis, not meaning.

How do you pronounce maíz, and why the accent mark?

Maíz is two syllables: ma-ÍZ, with stress on the second syllable. The accent mark breaks what would otherwise be a diphthong and forces the stress: [ma-ˈis].
In Latin America, z sounds like English “s.”
Also note mañana has ñ (a separate letter), pronounced like the “ny” in “canyon.”

If I replace maíz with a pronoun, which one is it?

Lo, because maíz is masculine singular.

Lo compramos en el mercado por la mañana. (We buy/bought it…)

For plural items (e.g., cobs), use los: Los compramos… (the cobs).

Is maíces a real plural? When would I use it?

Yes: maíces (z → c + -es, accent stays on í). It’s used mainly to talk about varieties or types of corn:

Se cultivan distintos maíces en la región. For multiple cobs, people more often say mazorcas (de maíz), not “maíces.”

What are the genders of the nouns here, and how do they affect articles?

maíz: masculine (el maíz) — no article in the sentence because it’s a mass noun.
mercado: masculine (el mercado) — hence en el mercado.
mañana: feminine (la mañana) — hence por la mañana.

How would I say “We are buying corn at the market this morning”?

Use the present progressive and add a clear time marker:

Esta mañana estamos comprando maíz en el mercado. Spanish also often uses the simple present for near-present actions: Esta mañana compramos maíz… but the progressive highlights the ongoing action.